


Wrap Around Your Dreams

by Doodsxd



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Humor, M/M, Post-War, Spirit Animals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-13
Updated: 2017-10-12
Packaged: 2019-01-16 16:37:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12346494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Doodsxd/pseuds/Doodsxd
Summary: "Oh, fuck this." He turned his back to leave. "Die, stupid snake. See if I care."He left with long, quick strides. Why bother to try to regain some dignity, anyway?Tiamat would just slide by and put it right back in the mud again.Or: Draco has a very uncooperative spirit animal. People are amused.





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> Hullo,  
> Once more, I'm here :) Hope you enjoy this one. I thought there was too little spirit animal au's in HP so.   
> I imagined Draco's as an "Atheris Squamigera", a spiky pretty snake.   
> Tiamat's the name of a babilonic goddess associated to the ocean. For some she's described as a snake. Ofion is a greek snake. Title comes from "Dreams" by Fletwood Mac.   
> I hope you all enjoy my little nonsense \o

**Chapter One**

 

"Have you seen a serpent?" Draco asked, praying people would at least try to help, despite his story and his family. That they would see the universality of his problem. 

They obviously did not. 

"Have you seen a serpent?" He asked a first-year, who probably couldn't recognize him, never having seen him before. "She is this big, orange and teal, and he has spikes for scales?" 

The girl spit as his feet. "I don't help Death Eater scum. I know you are a Malfoy, so don't even try." She turned her back, seeming to think what she just did was fair and just, stomping away. 

He sighed, shutting his eyes. What the hell did animal spirits were worth if they were never _with the spirit_  they were supposed to be?

"Stupid snake." He sighed and went ahead cautiously, looking compartment by compartment, to see where the hell did she go. 

"Have you seen a-" Why didn't he look through that little window again? Because he was stupid, that's why. 

And now he was a stupid, snake-less Slytherin that was stupidly paralyzed in front of Harry Potter. 

"Harry, do you know anyone who has a- _oh_." Granger came from behind Draco, talking absentmindedly. The blond boy stepped aside so she could pass. 

And then he saw the scales underneath her collar. 

"Excuse me," He said, looking furious, but not with Granger. "But I believe you have something of mine." 

Potter looked bored, like he couldn't be bothered. "I gave you back your wand months ago, Malfoy." He said. "I don't have anything that belongs to you anymore, so if you want to fight, just give up now." 

"As much as you enjoy to believe that the whole world revolves around your bellybutton, Potter, I wasn't actually talking to you." He said, acid and sweet, and turned to Granger. "Yes, you stupid snake, I can see you." 

Ofion, the sassy bugger, poked her little spiky head out and showed her tongue to him. 

"She's yours?" Granger's eyebrows almost reached her bangs. "But she's so-"

"A babbling nightmare? Yes, I know." He sighed and rubbed his forehead. 

Granger looked amused. "Are you _sure_ she's yours?" She asked, biting back a smile. 

Draco blanched. "What did she do this time?" 

The Gryffindor bit her lower lip to stop herself from chuckling. "I don't know if I should." 

"Better to know now than to go in blind." He answered with a long-suffering sigh. Even Potter seemed amused. 

"Well, she-" She stifled a chuckle. "She was going around asking other spirit animals if their owners would engage in a contest for her owner's heart, because he is a prince and deserves someone who'd die for him." 

Draco groaned and face-palmed. 

"You are the _worst."_ He told her. "I'll feed you only bugs for the next _month_." 

Granger maneuvered to put the serpent on his arms, where she slithered around his neck. 

"Thank you." He said to the girl and turned his back, wondering if he had finally hit rock bottom that his stupid snake's stunt didn't even put a blush on his cheeks. 

_"Warm."_ She hissed against his cheek, slithering to his back. 

"I'll put a warming charm on you when we go back to the compartment, just hold on-" He tried to say, but she already found a way out from his sleeve, falling to the floor. To his horror, Ofion - Tiamat, if you missed a beat and she introduced herself instead - slid and slid from the floor to Potter's shoe, up his leg and settled comfortably on a little ball over the other boy's _groin_ , as if there was nothing weird with that. 

Potter, despite looking a bit weirded out too, looking from Granger to Draco, didn't seem scared. Of course not, he could _speak_ tonormal snakes. He defeated the Dark Lord. What was a silly, talkative little snake compared to that, right? 

"Ofi- Tiamat, come back here _right now_." He hated how his voice trembled, embarrassment taking him. 

" _He is warm_." She hissed back at him, raising her pointy head. 

"You are embarrassing me." He didn't dare take his eyes off of the snake. He was probably pink all over already. " _Please_." 

She huffed and made her way _inside Potter's shirt_ , and alright, he could just die. Right now. Please, just put a whole underneath his feet so he can fall and die trampled by the train's wheels. Hopefully _then_ that stupid snake would _stop_. 

Potter chuckled, tickled by the snake's movement underneath his clothes. "It's fine, Malfoy. She's... nice." 

"She's stupid." He rubbed his forehead. 

"I think she's adorable." Granger grinned. 

Draco sighed. "Of course you would." 

"Why, because I'm a Gryffindor?" She cocked her head. 

"No, because you're a girl and she has those stupid puppy eyes and it's just-" He sighed again. "She's not even a puppy, how the fuck does a _snake_  do with puppy eyes anyway?" 

"Manipulate you?" Potter suggested, looking way too happy with Draco's suffering. That was why Draco hated him, of course. 

Luckily for him, he didn't have to answer - an actual _dog_  came in, barking and licking Granger's face. "Where's Ron?"

"Right here." The redhead entered the room, not noticing Draco behind him. Tiamat poked her head out of Potter's shirt to see the newcomer, who cooed at her.

"What a cute little thing," He said, bending to take a better look at her. She cowered against Potter's breastbone, pretending to be _shy._ "So your spirit animal finally appeared. Figures it would be a snake."

"Actually, she's mine, Weasley." Draco said, tense with shame. His only consolation is that the other boy jumped, scared. "And what do you mean by _finally appeared?_ Potter doesn't have a spirit animal?" He frowned. "But you turned eighteen this year already, didn't you?"

"Malfoy!" The redhead yelled, startled. Then realization dawned in him, and he looked from Tiamat, inside Potter's shirt, to him. The smirk bloomed naturally there. "Yours, is she?" 

"Just kill me, please." He watched Potter pet the snake with two careful fingers.

"I did turn eighteen," The spectacled boy shrugged. "The animal just never showed up." 

"That where you want to be, Malfoy?" Weasley teased, one brow arched. "That explains a lot, actually."

He groaned and strode forward quickly, gritting his teeth. 

"Tiamat, come back here." He bit out, shoving his hand unceremoniously inside Potter's shirt to grab the dreadful snake. 

"Malfoy-" Potter started to protest. 

"Shut up, Potter." He snapped. "She needs to learn proper behavior." 

Weasley snorted behind him. 

"Tiamat-" He finally managed to grab her tail, but it slid from his fingers down, _down-_

_"Oh."_ Potter blanched, obviously feeling what they were all seeing - the snake entering his pants and settling around his crotch, away from Draco's hands. 

He had never been so humiliated in his _life_. Granger and Weasley weren't even bothering to stifle their laughter anymore. 

"Oh, fuck this." He turned his back to leave. "Die, stupid snake. See if I care." 

He left with long, quick strides. Why bother to try to regain some dignity, anyway?

Tiamat would just slide by and put it right back in the mud again. 


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Curiosity got the best out of him around the fifth time Goyle mentioned the types of fish he had fished around Crete. "What did you do to Potter?" He asked the snake, who didn't bother pretending it wasn't with her, unlike usual. Small mercies. 
> 
> She propped her head up, huffing. "I only spoke the truth."

**Chapter Two**

 

"Malfoy, there's someone here for you." Someone called out from the door of the Slytherin common room. Draco stood up from where he was, comfortably sitting by the fire reading a letter from Goyle, who seemed to be very happy enjoying his new life in Greece, and walked to the door. 

Potter was hovering by, Tiamat over his shoulders. 

"I take it you want her back." His shoulders hunched and he was flushed. Tiamat did it again, he was sure. 

Draco rose his chin defiantly. "No. She's yours now, good luck with that." He started to shut the door, being stopped by Potter's arm. 

"Malfoy, just-" He whispered, staring at the floor. " _Please_. Just take her back." 

"What did she do this time?" He put his hands on his waist. 

"N-nothing, just- _please_." He took the snake from his shoulders and offered her to Draco. 

He took it, feeling just a tidbit better. At least he wasn't the only one humiliated by the stupid thing. 

"You're a terrible liar, Potter." He informed the other boy, who shrugged. 

"Just-" He looked torn between shame and reluctance. "Can't you-" He sighed, shutting his eyes. "Goodbye, Malfoy." 

"Bye, Potter." He shut the door as the Gryffindor walked away, back stiff as a board. Traumatized, for sure. 

He walked to his previous seat, determined to ignore the snake until he finished the letter. 

Curiosity got the best out of him around the fifth time Goyle mentioned the types of fish he had fished around Crete. "What did you do to Potter?" He asked the snake, who didn't bother pretending it wasn't with her, unlike usual. Small mercies. 

She propped her head up, huffing. " _I only spoke the truth._ "

Draco dropped the letter altogether. "About what?" 

" _The fact that the warm boy has a snake just like me inside his pants._ " She said, eyeing Draco with her big, dark eyes. " _She's even the same size as me! But she didn't want to talk to me._ " 

He could imagine what reaction Tiamat had, but it was better to ask. "What did you do, then?" 

" _I bit her!_ " She hissed proudly. " _So it would wake up! Obviously._ " She tilted her nose down in disappointment. " _But she didn't._ " 

"Of course it didn't." Draco didn't know whether to be mortified that his spirit animal apparently bit the Chosen Dick or to laugh about the absurdity of it. 

" _Well, it was rude_." She said solemnly. " _So I remembered what you told me._ " 

"About what?" 

" _Secrets_." Her tail vibrated excitedly. " _How they are power._ " 

Draco nodded, satisfied. That stupid snake was learning to be more Slytherin, at least. He was amused. "So what did you do?" 

" _I told everyone about the big, rude snake inside the warm-boy-Potter pants._ " Tiamat stretched her mouth into what looked like a smile. " _I even told people that it's bigger than me, so it sounds even more stupid."_

Draco was trying not to laugh, imagining the serpent going around and telling random people that Harry Potter was hung and into rough sex. It wasn't what she was _saying,_ of course, but it was what people would _hear._

"What's going on here?" Pansy arrived, her black cat following her closely, elegant. It stretched and sat silently around his owner, his _I-can't-be-bothered_  face turning into a yawn right after. Draco stared wistfully. Why couldn't he have an animal like that? 

Yes, Tiamat was prettier, but that didn't compensate the heart attack she would give him sooner or later. 

" _I bit into warm-boy-Potter's snake!_ " Tiamat announced proudly to Pansy. The girl seemed fond of the stupid snake for some reason. _You know she says a lot about you, right?_ , her words rang inside his head. He shuddered and cast the thought aside. Best not to delve into those dark waters. 

"What?" The brunette asked, reaching out to settle the snake comfortably on her lap, petting it. Tiamat preened underneath the caresses. 

 _"I bit into the snake that lives inside the warm-boy-Potter's pants._ " She explained calmly. " _It was rude and didn't want to talk to me._ " 

"A snake?" Pansy's eyes sparkled with barely concealed amusement. "Really?"

" _Yes_!" The snake hissed excitedly. " _Big, rude, stupid snake_." 

She hummed. "How big was it, exactly, darling?"

"Pansy!" Draco snapped, furious. 

"What?" She cocked her head, not even pretending to be innocent. "I'm curious." 

"He's a _Gryffindor_." 

"So?"

Draco spluttered. "I won't let you use my spirit animal to gather information on Potter's cock!"

" _It wasn't a cock!_ " Tiamat protested. " _Honestly, weren't you listening at all? It was a big, stupid snake!_ " 

Pansy laughed, finger caressing in the middle of the serpent's eyes. "Big and stupid." She mused. "Just your type, Draco." 

The boy groaned. 

Alright, _now_  he could drop dead, right? 


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall started carefully. "It's been brought to my attention that your spirit animal has been... how should I put it..." 
> 
> "She's a nightmare." He announced quickly. "Please continue."

**Chapter Three**

 

"Mr. Malfoy," McGonagall started carefully. "It's been brought to my attention that your spirit animal has been... how should I put it..." 

"She's a nightmare." He announced quickly. "Please continue." 

The Professor seemed taken aback by his abrupt intervention. She cleared her throat and fiddled with the papers over her desk, trying to recompose herself. "Well. Yes." The witch agreed. "Yes. Well." She looked at him as if shock chased away her words. "So." 

"You were saying?"

"Of course." McGonagall put her glasses back up her nose. "So. I talked to some specialists, and believe me, Mr. Malfoy, you are not the only one having trouble with your spirit animal." 

Draco nodded, pretending to accept that. Other people had problems, alright. They just weren't  _Tiamat_. 

"So, us teachers decided to bring in a few of those specialists into Hogwarts to help." She explained. "And we strongly recommend that you and your spirit animal attend to the sessions." 

 _Strongly recommend_. Alright. 

" _What is the old woman saying?_ " Tiamat came back from where she was exploring McGonagall’s office. He hoped she didn't leave a dead mouse anywhere. " _She looks like rotten plums, like the ones at the grass at home."_  She said, circling McGonagall shamelessly. " _She smells it too_." 

The Slytherin gritted his teeth as McGonagall’s expression turned to shock once more. "I swear I never taught her this." 

"I believe you." The witch's voice trembled. "To be perfectly honest, Mr. Malfoy, I witnessed a case like yours before, right when the first war finished." She said. "So I know perfectly well that this doesn't represent you or your thoughts. This is the byproduct of a natural unbalance, which isn't all that unexpected, considering." 

 _Death Eater_  was implicit to him, but he shook it off. McGonagall wasn't like that. He was absolved on his trial and she did not hold grudges. Personally, she even looked a little guilty when she spoke on his behalf at the Wizengamot. He wondered if she felt guilty for not helping him while she could. 

He wished he could tell her it was not her fault. 

"Was it a student?" He asked her. 

"He had graduated by then, but yes. A student." Was her answer. "He made a few bad choices along his way, and one of the consequences for it was to add to unsettled spirit. Brought him to a tipping point, and his spirit animal started to react." She told him, looking sorrowful. "It only stopped when he made his peace with himself." 

As it was, he simply nodded. "I'll attend to the sessions, Headmistress." He said, and then eyed the serpent, which got bored quickly, going to sniff her way into his expellment. "I'm just not sure it'll help."

Her expression hovered between firm and horrified by the perspective of having the petulant snake causing havoc around her school for the whole school year. "Let's hope it does, Mr. Malfoy." She vowed simply, steeling herself for the worse. "Let's just hope it does."

 

* * *

 

 

Of everyone in the world, it was Granger who sat beside him in Arithmancy. 

And Ancient Runes. 

And in the library. 

Did everyone around him just woke up one day and decide to go collectively bonkers?

"What's it, Granger?" 

She was barely hiding her smile. "Nothing." 

He put his hands on his temples, bracing himself for the migraine. "What is she doing now?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." 

"Granger." 

"Alright." She chuckled. "She's... I don't know what Harry told her, but she now thinks you and Harry should be together at all times, so she can be his spirit animal too." She stifled a laugh. "Because his is big and stupid." 

There it was. Migraine. 

"So," He tried to change subject. "His spirit animal never showed up?"

Her smile vanished as if someone had washed it out of her. "No." 

He watched her. "Must be frustrating." He said. "Things seem to go irrevocably wrong regarding him and there is nothing anyone can really do." 

She tilted her head. "Are you worried about him, Malfoy?" 

He huffed. "You had to make this weird, didn't you?"

The girl grinned proudly. "Harry will talk to the specialist that’s coming next week. It'll be fine, I'm sure." 

"And him dying twice doesn't give you a clue that things will probably never be  _fine_  with him anymore?" He teased and she stood up to leave. 

"He's at the Quidditch Pitch, Malfoy. And so is Tiamat." She informed him, hair swishing. "Don't miss him." 

He sighed his trademark long-suffering sigh and grabbed his books. 

Best to get over with that at once. 

 

* * *

 

 

Potter was laying on the grass of the Pitch, just as Granger told him. Around him, watching Potter, there were a bunch of Gryffindor girls, and Luna Lovegood. They were all giggling and looking at Tiamat, who was currently resting on Potter's chest rather comfortably, basking at the sunshine and the attention she was undoubtedly getting, the drama queen that she was. 

Steeling himself and walking to them, Draco wondered if he should have a permanent counter spell to the Bat Boogey Hex at hand for this. 

They saw him, though, so. Too late. He'd have to rely on Luna and Potter to avoid bats coming out of his nose. 

"Malfoy!" Ginny Weasley, always lively, called out on her knees. "She yours?" 

"The nightmare that thinks it's a snake and been scaring even McGonagall?" He asked back, strolling to them, trying to look casual and comfortable. He thought he was failing, but what the hell. It was worth trying. "Yes, she's mine." 

" _No one owns me, Dragon."_  Her hiss borders the indignant once he was close enough. 

"It's a figure of speech." He explained to her candidly. "You're staying with him, then?" 

" _Your speech is strange._ " She said. " _And yes. Harry Potter is warm and kind."_  

He rolled his eyes. "You do realize you're supposed to be  _my_  spirit animal?" He mused. "Linked to  _my_  soul and all." 

" _And I am._ " She huffed. " _Doesn't mean I can't have fun as well."_

"You should put it in your resume, Potter." Draco ironized, making the girls giggle. "Vanquisher of Dark Lords and buckets of fun for pet snakes."

"Maybe I will." The hateful boy answered, a lazy smile playing on his lips. He looked...  _no_. Don't go there. 

"Sit down and hang with us, Malfoy." Weasley smirked. "I promise I won't hex you. If you're not a prat, of course." 

"That's ingrained in my DNA as much as it is in yours." He told her off calmly. "Don't even bother denying, your ex is here." 

She pouted. "You're no fun." 

"Au contraire, mademoiselle, I'm loads of fun. Just not for Gryffindors." Her pout duplicated in size, how the hell did she do that? 

"Did you know Harry was supposed to be sorted in Slytherin?" Luna popped in, airy as always. Draco's brain screeched to a halt. 

"What?" He really looked at Potter " _No_."

"Yes." The Ravenclaw insisted. 

"You'd have been eaten  _alive._  And you would have  _never_  obeyed Dumbledore at all. Not to mention you would have died without Granger at your side right in first year. And then we'd all be dead, you Gryffindors on the principle, Luna because she can't keep her mouth shut and me because I'm too pretty to murder anyone."

"True." Potter conceded. "But the hat wanted me there." 

"Why?" He didn't want to sound so shocked, but, well. 

"Why, indeed." That devilish smile was a clue, if nothing else.

"Get a room!" The girls laughed and Draco frowned. 

"What?" 

"Tiamat have been telling us a few interesting things," Luna smiled. "It seems to think you require a hero to fight to win your heart." She reached out to pet the snake on the spiky head. "Harry did this already, didn't him?"

"What?" Draco could feel the flush taking his face. He took a step back, ready to humiliate himself by fleeing. 

"He saved you from Fiendfyre, didn't he?" She insisted, incredibly stupid or ridiculously perceptive. Draco couldn't tell which. "That seems very heroic to me." 

" _You did that?"_  Tiamat demanded, slithering so her face was directly over Potter's, looking him in the eye. " _Did you save the Dragon from eating fire?"_

Potter hesitated. "Hm, yes." 

" _How?_ " She asked again, strangely firm, slit pupils unwavering, unblinking, showing how serious it was to her. 

"Hm." Harry threw a fleeting apologetic look to Draco. "I flew away from the fire with him. On a broom." 

The snake's tail shimmied. Everyone was tense, holding their breaths around Tiamat. 

Surprisingly enough, the snake slid right off of Potter's chest. She crossed the distance between him and Draco and, as she reached his shoes, she simply made her way up his legs and around his neck. 

"What's wrong?" He asked her, confused. 

" _Let's go."_  She hissed in his ear. 

Potter was looking at him quizzically, but Draco could only shrug in response. 

"Alright, let's go." He said for the other's benefit and turned his back, leaving the Quidditch Pitch with the silent spirit snake wrapped around his neck. 


	4. Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "It's scared of him. Scared of coming close." She warned him through the language only both of them could understand. "Stupid humans consider it bad omen. So it hides."

**Chapter Four**

 

"Potter." Draco called him in the library, looking urgent. "Can I talk to you?" 

The Gryffindor nodded, making some gestures to his friends before following him outside the library, away from Madam Pince's owl-like ears. 

Draco fidgeted once outside, second-guessing himself. That was a stupid idea. 

"Malfoy?" Potter was watching him through his round glasses. "Is there something you wanted to say to me?" 

"I hate to ask you for more." He said honestly, looking at the floor. "I don't want to feel like one of the damsels in distress that roam around your life."

The other boy chuckled. "You are the first blond, if that helps." 

Draco scowled. "I can't even tell you how much it _does not_ help." He shook his head, trying to clear the anger clawing at him. He needed the boy's help. There was no point in being angry at him. "Tiamat is missing." 

"What?" Green eyes widened. "How?" 

"I don't know." He admitted. "She was there when I fell asleep, but now when I woke up. I searched everywhere, even tried the Point Me spell but-" 

"It led you to yourself, right?" Harry asked and nodded. "I'll help you find her. Good thing she is an easy color to spot." 

Draco just nodded back. He knew his face betrayed his worry, and that probably got to that mushy, melted soft-spot inside of Potter, because he reached to clasp his forearm. 

"We'll find her, alright?" He said, obviously trying to look reassuring. 

It was no comfort for Draco that he wanted to believe the other boy. He nodded his head and turned around to search for his stupid, _goddamn it be alright_  spirit animal snake. 

 

* * *

 

 

It was Potter who found her, of fucking course. She had been sliding on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. 

Needless to say that he was _furious._

 _"What were you thinking_?" He growled and she hid herself on Potter's collar. "I almost lost you! You know we are not fully bonded, why would you do that?" 

She showed him the tongue for a moment and mumbled something he couldn't hear. 

"What?" 

"She said she was feeling guilty." Potter translated to him, seeming resigned to be a part of that conversation.

"For what?" 

She whispered something again. "For embarrassing you, I think." He wrinkled his nose. "I'm a bit rusty at parseltongue." He apologized. Draco fought the urge to roll his eyes. Showoff. 

"Tiamat, you embarrass me all the time. Why is this time different?" He asked, confused. 

The snake came down Potter's extended arm to Draco's shoulder. " _He has a spirit animal, you know._ " Tiamat tried to change the topic, but she knew her soul bonded well. It took. 

"What is it?" 

" _It's scared of him. Scared of coming close._ " She warned him through the language only both of them could understand. " _Stupid humans consider it bad omen. So it hides._ " 

"Something that means death, then." Draco concluded. "A crow?" 

" _Yes_." Tiamat revealed. _"It's living by the Forest."_

"Potter." Draco grabbed the other boy's wrist, guiding him to said Forest. "You're going to shut up. You're going to stop being in denial about whatever it is that you're in denial about. And you're going to come with me." 

Potter, the moron, just frowned, taking his wrist from Draco's hand. "What are you doing?" 

"You trust Tiamat, don't you?" He asked back.

He sort of stopped at that. "Can't you tell me what is it?"

"If I do, you'll ty to run away. You need to face it." Tiamat wrapped herself around Draco's forearm without blinking, perfect synchrony to him. "We'll take you there."

Potter thought about it for a moment. "OK. Where are you going take me?"

"The Forest." Draco took Potter's hand to guide him more easily, not even noticing the other boy's hand clench around his. Tiamat was pulling his forearm, guiding him forward very quickly. He thought he saw the crow a few times, but they didn't reach it until it stopped running. 

"Stop." Draco stopped Potter. He and Tiamat exchanged a look before she jumped forward, going towards the crow. 

Draco felt it, and he was sure Potter felt it too. The shift in the air, the _connection_. A chill passed them both and he reached for Draco's wrist once more, eyes scared, looking straight for the crow. 

It was beautiful. Dark, discreet and very still. It looked certain and wise, secure. Everything Potter needed, apparently. 

And it was talking to Tiamat, who came back a bit afterwards. 

" _He_ _says its name is Huginn. He says he knows you're scared of him, but he's patient and willing to wait._ " 

"A crow?" Potter croaked out. "Like, a death crow?" 

"Huginn is the name of one of Odin's crows. It means thought. They're supposed to be all-knowing and very wise. It's why it's said they know the way in and out of the underworld, just as cats." 

" _A sssnake was once the goddess of death as well. The one who fought Dionysus."_ Tiamat added and Draco smiled at her with pride. He felt something tugging at his belly, settling down. 

"Potter, he's nothing to be afraid of. He's a piece of you that's been missing. You need each other." 

"Yeah but," Potter sighed. "People are going to talk. I thought I was done being talked about." His hand ran through his hair. "And... and something that symbolizes _death_  will only remind people... will only remind _me_  of what happened. Of the war and everything I lost. I-" He eyed Draco, honest. "I don't think I can." 

Draco chuckled. "People will never be over talking about you. You've been very good not giving a damn the last few months. Keep it on and you'll be fine." He put a hand on the other boy's shoulder. "And you're a Gryffindor. You walked towards death once because you knew it was something that needed to be done. Now, he may represent death to everyone else, but... can't he represent a new life for you?"  

The Gryffindor nodded and, slowly, carefully, he approached the crow, who waited patiently for him, looking like he'd wait a lifetime. 

Draco extended his arm and Tiamat slithered around him, settling on his shoulders. She seemed bigger, heavier somehow. It didn't bother him, though. 

"Let's go." He said simply, walking away from the Savior, who he had just ironically saved from himself. 


	5. Five

**Chapter Five**

 

"Malfoy," Potter caught with him on the hallway, the crow watchful on his shoulder. Tiamat poked her head outside Draco's clothes, watching them both without saying anything. 

They've been better lately. In tune. 

He didn't want to think that it was saving Potter that did it. 

"Hi." Draco answered, open. "I see you're feeling better about Huginn." He bowed his head discreetly to the bird, who did the same. 

"Ah, yeah." Potter scratched the back of his head. "About that, really. Thanks. I feel more... centered, after I got him." 

Draco offered him a small smile. "Yes, I understand how you feel." 

Potter fidgeted. "So." 

"So?" 

"I was wondering." Bright green eyes found his, intense in warmth. "I want to thank you for what you and Tiamat did for me. I was thinking about you to Hogsmeade-" 

"That's not necessary-" Draco tried to politely decline, since it was the polite thing to do-

"-as a date." Potter flushed, but his jaw was set on that stubborn clench that wouldn't take no for an answer. 

His brain stuttered to a halt. "What?" 

"A date, Malfoy. As in you, me, our nosy spirit animals. We can do some ice skiing, buy some trinkets and sweets, and end the night on the Three Broomsticks. Or Madam Puddifoot." Potter shrugged. "Your call." 

He looked around, frowning. "Is this a joke? Is someone's going to jump from the tapestry and take a snapshot of my face for future reference?"

Potter frowned. "What? No! Why would you think that?" 

"Because why else would you ask me out?" Draco stressed, his voice going high-pitched. 

"Because I fancy you, damnit!" Potter yelled back, attracting quite a bit of attention from the people on the corridor. He didn't seem to care. "And I think you like me back. I think this could work." He flushed. "Huginn helped me figure out that. How much things changed this year. How I came to feel attracted to you." 

"You and me?" Draco repeated, stupefied. 

"Yes." 

"And you're not cursed? And there is no trick?" He confirmed. Harry just opened a bright smile. 

"No tricks. No curses." He promised. "Just me seeing a different side of you. Mainly because of Tiamat." 

The little traitor preened, her tail shaking noisily underneath Draco's clothes. She poked her little head outside to see him. " _I told you. He's your Prince Charming."_

"I don't _want_  a Prince Charming." He answered in a whisper. Potter chuckled, showing that he had heard it. 

" _Well, you are getting one_ , _because Harry is in need of a princess to take care of and be taken care of._ " Huginn manifested, hopping on Draco's shoulder. Potter turned beet red. " _You are exactly what each other need."_

Draco looked at Potter. _Really_  looked at him, curious about what could happen. Oh, they would fight a lot, there was no doubt about that. But... what else could come from that? They spirit animals seemed to agree that they fit. It had to mean something. 

"As much as I loathe the place, Madam Puddifoot is better for privacy." Draco answered, seeing the smile bloom in Harry's face. "And none of those cheap flowers or chocolates, I want a proper trial of this, do you get me, Potter?" 

"Yes, Sir." Potter said mockingly, but Draco arched one eyebrow. 

"Keep that up and you might find yourself a treat at the end of our date." He answered in a seductive voice, making the other boy once again blush furiously. Then the Slytherin turned around, letting those green eyes watch him go. 

" _I told you_." Tiamat hissed against his ear. " _And I taught you that."_

He chuckled. "Shut up." 


	6. Six

**Chapter Six**

 

"Have you seen a serpent?" Draco asked, praying people would at least try to help, despite his story and his family. That they would see the universality of his problem. 

They obviously did not. 

"Have you seen a serpent?" He asked a first-year, who probably couldn't recognize him, never having seen him before. "She is this big, orange and teal, and he has spikes for scales?" 

The girl spit as his feet. "I don't help Death Eater scum. I know you are a Malfoy, so don't even try." She turned her back, seeming to think what she just did was fair and just, stomping away. 

He sighed, shutting his eyes. What the hell did animal spirits were worth if they were never _with the spirit_  they were supposed to be?

"Stupid snake." He sighed and went ahead cautiously, looking compartment by compartment, to see where the hell did she go. 

"Have you seen a-" Why didn't he look through that little window again? Because he was stupid, that's why. 

And now he was a stupid, snake-less Slytherin that was stupidly paralyzed in front of Harry Potter. 

"Hi, love." Harry told him with a small, lazy, _fucking sexy_  smile as he petted the snake. Huginn was perched by the window of the train, as always, Tiamat sprawled on the seat. 

"Hello." Draco answered, a warm smile melting his face. He entered the cabin, moving to lay beside his boyfriend. 

"Are you ready?" Harry asked him, relaxed, already dressed in his muggle attire. 

"For what?"

"Christmas at the Burrow." He answered with a raised brow. "That's gotta be scary for you."

The blonde shrugged. "Why would I be scared of a bunch of redheads?"

Harry's raised brow got higher. "Because they're the only family I know?"

"And _that's_  why I bought them all thoughtful and expensive, but not too expensive, gifts." Draco shrugged again, feigning nonchalance. "I'm a Malfoy, Potter. I know how to navigate social gatherings and get into people's good graces." 

"I don't think they're like the people any Malfoy had to charm before, but suit yourself." Harry chuckled. 

The door to the compartment opened and Ron's hound came in, sniffing around. The boy came right afterwards, holding Hermione's otter in his hands with a big smile. 

"Hello." He plopped beside Draco, making him scoot closer to Harry, almost cuddling him. "What's up?" 

"Did she say yes yet?" Draco asked, eyeing the redhead. 

His smile fell. "Didn't have the guts yet, no." 

"She'll say yes, Weasley. I helped you choose that ring, she'd be stupid if she didn't say yes." He uncurled from Harry's side. 

"It's a great ring." Harry agreed and Ron bit his lower lip. 

"Yeah, but... that's _Hermione_  we're talking about. She doesn't fawn over rings and money stuff. If she did she wouldn't be with me in the first place anyway." He shrugged, honest and defeated. 

"Yes." Draco agreed. "But she's already with _you_. She knows how much it means that you got her an expensive ring, and for some reason I can't fathom understanding, she already _is_  with you, which means she sees something in you that's worthy of her attention and affection." He said, very solemn. "Don't screw this up, Weasley." 

Ron nodded, looking nervous but soothed. "Thanks, Malfoy." 

"You're welcome." He said in his I'm-better-than-you tone, swinging both of his legs over Harry's to stretch them. "Now bring me a chocolate frog, will you?" 

Ron, still thinking about the issue with Hermione, stood up and went, too distracted to see how Draco was using his distraction to his favor. 

"Too much Slytherin on you, Malfoy." Harry chuckled. 

"I know." He answered, very satisfied with himself. He leaned to kiss Harry. "She's going to say yes. I don't know why he's so afraid." 

"Everyone is afraid of rejection. What if she thinks it's too soon or she's not sure about him, or they disagree on something major like children?" The Gryffindor pointed out. "It's hard, to love someone and yet not being able to be with them." 

"We went through a war." Draco answered simply. "All of us should have learned how to properly value love and time." He eyed the spirit animals and then Harry, trying to memorize that moment. The closeness, their lines together. "It's all that we have, after all." 

Harry hummed. "Does this mean you'd say yes?" 

"Not to Weasley." Draco shook his head. "But yes... I don't see why waste any time. Whoever it was that I was with, I'd do it if I were Granger." He said thoughtfully. 

"Good." The Gryffindor smiled, taking something from his pocket. A small black box. 

Draco stilled. He looked from the ring to Harry. Grabbed the box and opened it. 

"Saw you eyeing it when we were on that store with Ron." He said easily, smiling. "I'm sorry I don't own any family heirloom to give to you." 

Draco shook his head. "I have heirlooms enough to last a lifetime." He said, a tremble in his voice. "This is something new, Something fresh." He smiled. "A new beginning." 

"Does that mean yes?" 

"Of course!" The Slytherin punched the other boy's shoulder as he laughed. 

Harry grabbed the ring and slowly put it on Draco's finger. 

"We're lucky none of our spirit animals are magpies." Harry chuckled, looking from Tiamat to Huggin approaching to see the ring. 

" _It'ss pretty."_  Tiamat flickered her tongue over the metal, making Draco's finger itch. " _I approve."_

Huginn just nodded his head, looking peaceful and satisfied. Almost proud.

"He's channeling Dumbledore again." Draco rolled his eyes "At least do us the favor of channeling his parents or godfather instead, bird." 

Said bird just made a sniggering sound. " _Don't come to me for advice when you need to break the news for your mother, then._ " 

Draco and Harry paled. Tiamat started to laugh her little lungs off. 

"Well, shit." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the ride. Thank you so much for reading.


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